The present invention relates to unmanned vehicles and to methods and systems utilizing unmanned vehicles, more particularly to same involving air transportation.
The United States Navy desires that its forces have a logistics sustainment projection power of up to 200 nautical miles, which is the typical distance from a ship launch point to the preplanned delivery or receipt point on land. Logistics presently available to U.S. forces operating in the littoral and more inland regions of the world depend on supplies being shipped in a conventional manner using existing air-based, ship-based or land-based assets. These methods of delivery, generally encompassed by what is referred to as the “iron mountain” approach, are ponderous. The iron mountain approach to cargo transport is constantly at risk of attack, is inherently expensive and requires considerable distribution logistics.
Various U.S. Department of Defense troop components (e.g., the Marine Corps and the US Army Special Operations units) are actively pursuing advanced parachute and airdrop technologies such as high altitude, deployable, precision airdrop systems for payload weights in the range of 200 to 40,000 pounds. High altitude delivery significantly reduces but does not eliminate aircraft vulnerability. Moreover, considerable cost is associated with dedicated manned missions of this kind. Although aircraft risk and loss may be minimized or limited, cost remains a critical consideration.
An unmanned vehicle is an autonomous or semi-autonomous craft that performs one or more functions as if one or more persons were aboard. In recent years developmental interest in unmanned land, sea, air and space vehicles and vehicle systems has increased for a variety of military and civilian applications. Unmanned vehicle use has potential economic and risk benefits. Especially attractive is the ability of unmanned vehicles to perform dangerous or hazardous tasks without risk to humans. “Unmanned aerial vehicles” (abbreviated “UAVs”) are also referred to as “unpiloted aircraft” or “flying drones.”
The following U.S. patent documents, incorporated herein by reference, are informative about unmanned aerial vehicles or control systems pertaining thereto: Grieser U.S. Pat. No. 6,471,160 B2 issued Oct. 29, 2002; Nicolai U.S. Pat. No. 6,409,122 issued Jun. 25, 2002; Martorana et al. U.S. Pat. No. 6,392,213 issued May 21, 2002; Schwaerzler U.S. Pat. No. 6,377,875 B1 issued Apr. 23, 2002; Leibolt U.S. Pat. No. 6,286,410 B1 issued Sep. 11, 2001; Palmer U.S. Pat. No. 6,260,797 B1 issued Jul. 17, 2001; Drymon U.S. Pat. No. 6,176,451 B1 issued Jan. 23, 2001; Brum et al. U.S. Pat. No. 6,116,606 issued Sep. 12, 2000; Woodland U.S. Pat. No. 6,056,237 issued May 2, 2000; Mclngvale U.S. Pat. No. 5,716,032 issued Feb. 10, 1998; Eiband et al. U.S. Pat. No. 5,240,207 issued Aug. 31, 1993; Yifrach U.S. patent application Publication 2003/0001045 A1 published Jan. 2, 2003. The following paper, incorporated herein by reference, is also pertinent: Jeff Fisher and Sean Wellman, “Semi-Rigid Deployable Wing (SDW) Advanced Precision Airborne Delivery System,” AIAA-97-1495, 14th AIAA Aerodynamic Decelerator Systems Technology Conference, San Fransico, Calif. Jun. 3–5, 1997 pages 224–253, American Institute of Aeronautics and Aeronautics, Inc. 1997.